Carton filling apparatus



June 2, 1959 R. GUYER 2,888,963

CARTON FILLING APPARATUS Filed May 14, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 M/I/E/VTORl 77/ fizz molds Gag er L 3&4 5

ATTORNEY June 2, 1959 R. GUYER 2,888,963

CARTON FILLING APPARATUS Filed May 14, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ,29 a 37 50/-zz 4 ez no/ds Gaqer' ATTORNEY CARTON FILLING APPARATUS Application May14, 1954, Serial No. 429,735

16 Claims. (Cl. 141-144) This invention relates to an improvement incarton filling apparatus and deals particularly with a device capable ofintroducing a measured quantity of product from a hopper to a carton orother receptacle.

Various types of rotary filling devices have been produced. Many suchdevices comprise a rotatable wheel including a series of peripheralpockets. These pockets rotate beneath a supply hopper and the productdrops by gravity or agitation into the pockets. Upon rotation of thewheel, the pockets move into position above a carton or other receptacleand deliver the material in the pockets to the receptacles.

Various types of devices have been employed for determining the quantityof material which may be delivered into the pockets. Adjusting meanshave been provided for varying the size of the pockets so as to vary theamount of material in the pockets. However, these means normally limitthe maximum size of the pockets and do not permit expansion orenlargement of the pockets after they have been filled.

An object of the present invention resides in the provision of a rotaryfilling apparatus which includes a series of pockets having plungerstherein by means of which the product may be expelled and by means ofwhich the size of the pockets may be varied. These plungers arecontrolled in such a manner as to present a pocket of adjusted depth toreceive the goods flowing into the pockets. At the completion of thepocket filling operation the plungers retract in a manner to enlarge thevolume of the pocket. As a result the material within the pocket isloosely contained and the crowding of the material within the pocketsagainst the peripheral pocket enclosing wall is avoided.

A further feature of the present invention resides in the provision of afilling apparatus which includes a series of peripheral pockets, thewalls of which are arranged at an acute angle to a radial plane throughthe center of the pockets. In other words, the pockets do not extendradially within the rotating wheel but are angularly inclined so thatduring the major portion of the travel of the filled pockets the weightof the contents is upon a wall of the pocket rather than upon theencircling retaining wall. As a result the contents do not bear heavilyagainst the encircling wall as the pockets rotate, thus preventinginjury to the materials being packaged.

An added feature of the present invention lies in the provision of afiller useful in the filling of materials such as vegetables and thelike either in fresh or frozen condition. Materials of this type whenpacked by a rotary wheel of usual construction fall against theencircling retaining wall as soon as the pockets rotate towardhorizontal position and by the time the wheel rotates throughsubstantially 180 virtually all of the weight of the material rests uponthat portion of the product which is against the stationary encirclingwall. As a result considerable friction is presented tending to abradeor press the material engaging the encircling wall, causing a del-States Patent eterious effect upon the product. In the present device Hr ICE the major portion of the weight of the product rests upon a pocketwall almost until the pocket is opened, thereby avoiding thedifliculties previously encountered.

These and other objects and novel features of my invention will be moreclearly and fully set forth in the following specification and claims.

In the drawings forming a part of the specification:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of the filling device in readinessfor operation.

Figure 2 is a sectional view through the apparatus shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a sectional view through the apparatus, the position of thesection being indicated by the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

The filling apparatus includes a pair of generally parallel side plates10 and 11 which are supported upon a suitable table or standard 12.These sides 10 and 11 support bearings 13 and 14 respectively whichsupport a rotatable shaft 15. A sprocket 16 is mounted upon the shaft 15and is connected by a chain 17 to a cooperable sprocket 19 upon thedriven shaft 20 of a gear reducing unit 21. The drive shaft 22 of thereducing unit 21 is connected by a suitable couple 23 to the drive shaft24 of a motor 25. Upon rotation of the motor 25 the shaft 15 is rotatedat a properly reduced speed.

A hub 26 is mounted upon the shaft 15 and is keyed or otherwise securedfor rotation therewith. A disc 27 is secured to the hub 26. A ringshaped member 29 is secured in spaced relation to the disc 27 and formsthe second side of a rotatable wheel, the periphery of the disc 27forming the first side.

With reference to Figure 2 of the drawings it will be noted that spacers30 are provided between the disc 27 and the ring 29 to hold these partsin proper relation. Each of these spacers includes an outer arcuate wall31 which conforms with the outer periphery of the disc and ring. Thespacers 30 also includes an inner arcuate wall 32 which follows theinner curvature of the ring 29. One end of each spacer 30 comprises apocket wall 33 which is at an acute angle to a radial plane through theaxis of rotation. The other end of each spacer 30 also comprises anangular wall 34. The wall 34 of each spacer is at a greater angle from aplane through the axis of rotation than the wall 33. The angles of thewalls 33 and 34 are so arranged that wall 33 of one pocket is parallelto the wall 34 of the next adjoining pocket. Bolts or other fasteningmeans such as 35 connect the ring 29 and the disc 27 to clamp thespacers 30 therebetween.

By properly proportioning the spacers a wheel is thus provided whichincludes a series of angularly spaced pockets having parallel front andrear walls defined by the disc 27 and the ring 29 and parallel sidewalls 33 and 34 formed by the ends of the spacers 30. The angles ofthese walls is such that the walls 34 lead the walls 33 in the directionof rotation of the wheel and are so arranged that when the center ofeach pocket has travelled through from its uppermost position the wall34 inclines inwardly and downwardly from the periphery of the wheel. Inother words the pockets are so angled that the weight of the majorportion of the contents is upon the leading wall of each pocketsubstantially after the pockets rotate 90 from their top position.

Suitable guides 36 and 37 are provided on the discs 27 and the ring 29respectively, these guides being parallel to the pocket walls 33 and 34.Plungers 39 are slidably supported within the pockets, the plungersbeing grooved on opposite sides to accommodate the guides 36 and 37.Each plunger 39 is provided with a pair of inwardly projecting lugs 40in spaced relation. Levers 41 are pivotally connected at 42 to the lugs40. The levers 41 are of the bell-crank type and are pivotally connectedintermediate their ends at 43 to arms 44.. Each arm 44 is pivotaseaeeaally connected at its inner extremity 45 to the disc 27. In Figure 2 thepivots connecting the arms 45 to the disc are in section as thesectional view is drawn between the disc and the arms.

The inner ends 46 of the levers 41 are equipped with cam rollers 47. Acam 49 is'connected by suitable bolts 50 to the front plate 11. Spacingbosses 51 are provided on the cam 4-9 for holding the cam spaced fromits support 11.

The cam 49 is suitably spaced to permit full retraction of the plungers39 at the top point of their rotation and to hold the plungers fullyretracted after they have been filled until the pockets approach thebottom point of their rotation. While the pockets are in invertedposition the cam rollers 47 engage a shoulder 52 on the cam which actsto quickly swing the outer portion of each lever 41 into substantialalignment with the arm 44 pivoted thereto. The cam maintains theplungers in projected position until these plungers approach theuppermost point of their rotation, whereupon the plungers retract toassist in drawing material into the pockets.

A cam track 53 is pivotally connected at one end 54 to the front support11. As illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawings the other end of the camtrack 53 is provided with a bolt 55 which extends through an arcuateslot 56 having the axis of the bolt '54 as its center. As a result byloosening the nut 57 of the bolt 55 the angle of the cam track 53 may bevaried. The cam track 53 is provided with a curved groove 59 havingoutwardly flared entrance ends 60.

Each of the levers 41 is provided on their outer arms with a cam roller61 which is engageable into the groove 59. .The cam track 53 is soarranged that its entrance end is always in the path of movement of thecam roller 61, the flaring end of the cam track compensating for anyadjustment of the track and guiding the cam roller 61 into the groove59. This cam track 53 acts to limit the retraction of the plungers 39while they are in product receiving position. By swinging the cam trackin a counterclockwise direction about its pivot 54 from the positionshown in Figure 2 and lowering the left hand end of this track, theplungers may retract to a greater extent. By swinging the left hand endof the cam track upwardly, the retraction of the plungers is reduced.

The spaced plates ll) and 11 are connected above the wheel by parallelplates 63 and 64. These plates extend to a point closely adjacent theperiphery of the wheel and form the ends of an inlet hopper directingproduce to the pockets. A brush 65 forms a continuation of the wall 63,this brush having bristles directed against the periphery of the wheeland acting to limit the fill of the pockets. Excess material is brushedfrom the surface to maintain the material contained within the confinesof the pockets. The brush bristles also sweep along the arcuate outerwalls 33 of the spacers 30 to prevent pro duce from being forced betweenthe periphery of the wheel and the arcuate encircling wall 66 whichextends from the brush 65 to a point 67 near the lower extremity of thewheel. The Wall 66 is detacha'bly connected about the periphery of thewheel and is either flexible or shaped to fit the contour of the Wheel.A pair of pins 69 extend radially from the plates and lit and extendthrough apertures in the wall 66 to hold the upper end of this wall inproper position. The wall 66 is provided with a transverse bar 70secured thereto which is at a point spaced above the upper end of thewall 66. As is illustrated in Figure l of the drawings a pair of levers71 are'pivotally connected to transverse extensions 72 and 73 of theside plates 10 and 11. These levers 71 are pivotally mounted alongaligned pivots '74 to their respective walls. The upper ends of theselevers 71 are designed to engage the transverse bar '70 and to hold itagainst the arcuate walls '75 of the side plates 10 and 11. The arcuateWalls '75 are of slightly greater radius than the wheel of the tiller sothat the wall 66 is supported 4 closely adjacent to the outer peripheryof the wheel when this wall is in position. A cam 76 is pivoted at 77 toeach of the side plate extensions '72 and 73, the cams being providedwith levers '79 by means of which they may be pivoted.

When it is desired to remove the enclosing wall 66 it is only necessaryto pivot the cams 76 so that they release the levers 71. The levers 71may then swing in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 1 todisengage the upper ends of these levers from the bar 70. The arcuatewall 66 may then be disengaged from the pins 69.

The cam 49 has been illustrated as having an external cam surface whichengages the cam rollers 47. However, in actual practice the cam 49 maybe of larger diameter and includes a cam track for controlling theposition of the cam rollers. Alternatively the cam may be provided withan outer wall which is separate from but connected to the cam 49 foraccomplishing a similar purpose.

Springs 30 may be provided for directing the pistons 39 toward theirinnermost positions, these springs extending between the levers 41 and afixed portion of the wheel hub 27. The particular connection of thesesprings is not important as long as they tend to retract the pistons 39.If the cam track in which the rollers 47 are located is in the form of agroove, the springs 80 may he eliminated if desired.

It has been explained that the cam track 53 is pivoted about the centerof the bolt or shaft 54. As is indicated in Figure 3 of the drawings,the bolt 54 may comprise a shaft upon which is mounted a worm wheel 81.A Worm gear 82 is shown engaging the wheel 81. Rotation of the wormwheel 32 may serve to rotate the shaft 54 which in turn adjusts theposition of the cam track 53. The nut 57 holds the cam track in anadjusted position but permits adjustment of the cam track when loosened.

A conveyor 83 is shown in Figure 2 for moving cartons such as 84 beneaththe wheel which is indicated in general by the numeral 85. The conveyor83 is in timed relation with the wheel 85 so that the open toppedcartons 84 pass beneath the Wheel pockets.

In order to prevent the spilling of any of the contents and to provide abaflle or shield adjoining the rear edge of the carton being filled, abattle plate 86 is pivotally supported at 87 between the side plates 27and 29 of the Wheel. These battles are recessed in notches such as 89into the body of the wheel so as to be retained within the periphery ofthe wheel during rotation thereof. As indicated in Figure 2 thesebaflles are suspended vertically by gravity as the wheel swings upwardlyand fold by gravity against the surface of the wheel as they extendabove the axis of the Wheel. During the downward pivotal movement on theother side of the wheel these baffles 86 are held in place by theencircling wall 66. When the bafiles pass the lower edge of the wall 66,they drop by gravity downwardly and against the trailing edge of thecartons 84 so as to guide the contents of the wheel pockets into thecartons.

The wall 66 extends to a point rather close to the lower extremity ofthe wheel but a portion thereof is cut away between the side 27 of thewheel and the side plate 10 of the frame so that the carton covers 90may extend upwardly from the cartons and pass between the wheel and theframe side 10. After the cartons have been filled they usually aredirected to a carton closer which closes the top of the carton.

The operation of the apparatus is believed readily understood from theforegoing description. The product with which the cartons are to befilled is placed within the hopper formed at the top of the wheelbetween the side plates 10 and 11 and the end walls 63 and 64. Rotationof the wheel in a counter clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 2brings each pocket beneath the hopper while the plunger or piston 39 isin outwardly pro-' jected position. As the pockets move beneath thehopper the plungers 39 retract, the extent of the retraction dependingupon the position of the cam track 53. As a result the amount of productwhich enters the pockets is varied by the position of the cam track. Asthe pockets pass from beneath the hopper the brush 65 acts to removeexcess product from the surface of the pockets so that the pockets arenot overfilled. Furthermore, as the pockets move from beneath the hopperthe cam rollers 61 leave the cam track 53 and the springs 80 or theshape of the cam retracts the plungers 29 to their innermost position.

In the event the cam 49 is provided with a cam track to control theposition of the plungers 39, the cam track groove is widened at the topof the cam so as to permit the plungers to be maintained by the camtrack 53 in a desired adjusted position. In other words, the position ofthe plungers during the upward swing of the wheel 85 is controlled bythe cam 49 from this point to the point of disengagement between the camcontrol 61 and the cam track 63. The position of the plungers iscontrolled by the cam track 53 and the groove containing the cam rollers47 is so arranged as to permit this control. However, after the camrollers 61 are disengaged from the cam track 53 either the cam groove ofthe cam 47 or the springs 86 cause the plungers 39 to fully retract.

This full retraction of the plungers after the pockets are filled withthe desired amount of product is of importance as it normally increasesthe volume of the pockets after they have been filled and prevents thecrowding of the product within the pockets against the wall 66. As isalso evident from an examination of the left hand side of Figure 2 theweight of the product is mainly against the leading wall 34 of eachpocket until the pockets have rotated considerably past horizontalposition. Thus the shape of the pockets tends to retain the product andto minimize the weight of the product upon the wall 66.

At the time the forward edge of each pocket passes the lower extremityof the wall 66, a carton 84 is immediately beneath the pocket and thecontents of the pocket are directed downwardly and rearwardly into thecarton. As the wheel continues its rotation the contents continue todrop from pocket into the carton and when the pockets are fully openedthe shields or baffles 86 tend to prevent spilling of the contents overthe rear edge of the cartons.

The ejection of the material within the pockets is aided by theprojection of the plungers 39 after the pockets are open. As soon aseach pocket is open the cam roller 47 which controls the projection andretraction of the piston engages the shoulder 52 of the cam 49 and asthe wheel rotates the lever 41 and its corresponding arm 44 swing towardaligned position, thus urging the plungers 39 outwardly. Thus anyproduct which tends to cling to the walls of the pockets is ejected andfalls into the carton 84 while it is still beneath the pocket and whilethe baffle 86 is against the trailing edge of the carton.

For the purpose of simplifying the description, it may be said that theside walls of each pocket are parallel and extend on planes which areusually normal to the axis of rotation of the wheel. The front and rearwalls of the pocket are arranged on parallel planes which are tangent tocircles or cylinders encircling the axis of rotation. By extending theplane of the rear wall 33 of each pocket it will be noted that this wallis tangent to a cylinder of relatively small radius encircling the axisof rotation. The forward wall 34 of each pocket is arranged on a planetangent to a circle or cylinder of relatively larger diameter encirclingthe wheel axis. Stated otherwise, all of the walls of each pocket arevertical in two rotative positions of the wheel, which positions are onehundred eighty degrees apart in the direction of rotation of the Wheel.Each of these positions is reached shortly after the pocket has passedthrough a vertical plane including the axis of rotation of the wheel.

manner in which the pockets incline.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have d e scribed theprinciples of construction and operation of my carton filling apparatus,and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodiment thereof, Idesire to have it understood that obvious changes may be made within thescope of the following claims without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

I claim:

1. A filling device for use in filling cartons, the device including arotatable wheel, means supporting said wheel for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, said wheel having a series of peripheralpockets therein, said pockets having slidable plungers therein formingthe inner surface thereof, lever means pivotally connected to saidplungers for regulating the position thereof, said lever means includinga pair of pivotally connected toggle members one of which is pivoted tothe plunger and the other of which is pivoted to said wheel inwardly ofthe plunger, a hopper above said wheel for guiding material into saidpockets, a conveying device beneath said wheel for conveying cartonsbeneath the pockets, a wall encircling the portion of the wheel betweensaid hopper and a point near the lower extremity of the wheel forconfining material within said pockets, means engageable with one ofsaid toggle members for successively retracting said plungers as theypass beneath said hopper, means engageable with said one toggle memberfor projecting said plungers as they pass oversaid cartons near thelower position of the plungers, said last named engageable meanscomprising cam means.

2. The construction described in claim 1 and including means forlimiting the retraction of said plungers as they pass beneath saidhopper.

3. The construction described in claim 1 and including means forlimiting the retraction of said plungers as they pass beneath saidhopper and means for fully retracting said plungers after they pass frombeneath said hopper.

4. A receptacle filling apparatus including a wheel,

means rotatably supporting said wheel for rotation about a substantiallyhorizontal axis, a series of pockets in the periphery of said wheel, ahopper above said wheel for guiding material into said pockets uponrotation of said wheel, conveying means designed to support receptacles,means moving said conveying means in timed relation with said wheel tomove the receptacles beneath said pockets upon rotation of said wheel, aperipheral wall encircling said wheel between said hopper and a pointadjacent to the lower extremity of the Wheel, and a baffle movablysupported adjoining the trailing edge of each pocket and confinedsubstantially within the periphery of the wheel as the wheel rotateswithin said peripheral wall, and each said bafile moving outwardlybeyond the periphery of said wheel as said wheel pivots beyond the lowerend of said peripheral wall, each said bafile acting to guide materialfrom its adjoining pocket into a corresponding receptacle.

5. The construction described in claim 4 and in which said baffles arepivotally supported.

6. The construction described in claim 4 and in which said bafiies arepivotally supported on axes substantially parallel to the axis ofrotation of said wheel.

7. A filling apparatus including a wheel, means rotatably supportingsaid wheel for pivotal movement about a substantially horizontal axis, aseries of peripheral pockets in said wheel, said pockets having parallelside walls arranged on planes substantially normal to the axis ofrotation, said pockets also having parallel forward and rear walls,plungers slidably supported in said pockets and movable in a non-radialdirection from a projected position to a retracted position, thedirection of movement of said plungers being tangent to a circle havingthe wheel axis as its center, a hopper above said wheel ripeness 7 forgliding material into said pockets and conveying means beneath saidwheel for conveying receptacles beneath said pockets and a confiningwall encircling a portion of the wheel between said hopper and a pointnear the lower extremity of the wheel.

8. A carton filling apparatus including a rotatable wheel, meanssupporting said wheel upon a horizontal axis, pockets in the peripheryof said wheel, a filling hopper above said wheel directing materialtoward said pockets upon rotation of said wheel, means for movingcartons beneath said wheel in timed relation therewith to receivematerial from said pockets, plungers forming the bases of said pockets,said plungers being movable between fully projected and fully retractedposition, adjustable means retracting said plungers to a selected extentbetween said positions as the pockets pass beneath said hopper, andindependent means for fully retracting said plungers after the pocketspass filling position and also for fully projecting said plungers insaid pockets as said pockets extend over said cartons.

9. The structure described in claim 8 and in which said adjustableretracting means acts to hold said plungers at a position intermediatesaid extreme positions while said plungers are beneath said hopper.

10. A filling apparatus including a wheel, means supporting said wheelfor rotation about a horizontal axis, pockets arranged peripherally insaid wheel, plungers closing the inner ends of said pockets, saidplungers being movable between a fully projected position and a fullyretracted position, a hopper above said Wheel, means directing materialfrom said hopper into said pockets, movable means moving in timedrelation to said wheel and arranged to support receptacles to movebeneath said pockets upon rotation of said wheel, a peripheral Wallencircling said wheel from said hopper to a point near the lowerextremity of the wheel to confine material in said pockets, meansprojecting said plungers as said pockets move over said movable meanssupporting said receptacles and also for fully retracting said plungersas they pass from beneath said hopper, and independent means forretracting said plungers as they move beneath said hopper limiting theretraction of said plungers to a position between said first mentionedpositions while they are beneath said hopper.

11. The construction of claim 10 and in which the means for limiting theretraction of the plungers is adjustable.

12. The structure of claim 11 and in which the independent means forlimiting the retraction of the plungers comprises a cam track.

13. A filling device for use in filling cartons, the device including arotatable wheel, means supporting said wheel for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, said wheel having a series of peripheralpockets therein, said pockets having slidable plungers therein formingthe inner surface thereof, lever means pivotally connected to saidplungers for regulating the position thereof, a hopper above said wheelfor guiding material into said pockets, a conveying device beneath saidwheel for con veying cartons beneath the pockets, a wall encircling theportion of the wheel between said hopper and a point near the lowerextremity of the wheel for confining ma= terial within said pockets,means retracting said plungers as they pass beneath said hopper, meansprojecting said plungers as they pass over said cartons near the lowerposition of the plungers, cam means and means on said lever meansengageable with said cam means forming said plunger projecting andretracting means, a second cam, means adjustably supporting said secondcam, and means on said lever means engageable with said second cam forlimiting retraction of said plungers as they pass beneath said hopper.

14-. A filling device for use in filling cartons, the device including arotatable wheel, means supporting said wheel for rotation about asubstantially horizontal axis, said wheel having a series of peripheralpockets therein, said pockets having slidable plungers therein formingthe inner surface thereof, lever means pivotally connected to saidplungers for regulating the position thereof, a hop per above said wheelfor guiding material into said poclo ets, a conveying device beneathsaid wheel for convey ing cartons beneath the pockets, a wall encirclingthe portion of the wheel between said hopper and a point near the lowerextremity of the wheel for confining material within said pockets, meansretracting said plungers as they pass beneath said hopper, meansprojecting said plungers as they pass over said cartons near the lowerposition of the plungers, cam means and means on said lever meansengageable with said cam means forming said plunger projecting andretracting means, and baffie means movably supported adjacent eachpocket and projectable from said wheel against said cartons as saidpockets move into lowermost position.

15. A filling apparatus for filling receptacles including a wheel, meanspivotally supporting said wheel, means connected to said wheel forrotatingthe same in one direction, a series of angularly spaced pocketsin the periphery of said wheel, the walls of each said pockets beingvertical in two rotative positions of the wheel, each of said positionsbeing substantially after the pocket has passed a vertical planeincluding the axis of rotation of the Wheel in said one direction ofrotation, the axes of said pockets being tangent to a circle having thewheel axis as its center, and the two positions being one hundred eightydegrees apart.

16. The structure of claim 15 and in which said pockets are rectangular,with two sides of said pockets arranged on planes normal to the axis ofsaid wheel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS202,081 Wheatley Apr. 2, 1878 451,761 Howland May 5, 1891 637,612 HopperNov. 21, 1899 709,793 McGinnity Sept. 23, 1902 2,097,887 Lacey Nov. 2,1937 2,684,186 Mattos July 20, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 81,360 Germany Sept.2, 1894

